A few months ago, an egyptian friend sent me this clip:
It is a sung version of Mahmoud Darwishs poem عن إنسان – About a Human.
The voice, the tune, Darwishs eternaly beautiful words left me dumbfounded. I listened to it over and over, and every time, it had me in tears, for the sheer beauty of the music and the poetry.
The most incredible thing about this song would be the voice of the young singer, Nai Al-Barghouti from Ramallah, born in 1996! Yes, that's right! 1996! How on earth a person of such a young age can carry so much wisdom, so much grief and emotion in her voice, is completely beyond me! Darwish is an icon, his poetry belongs to the most beautiful, sophisticated in the world, and yet, Al-Barghouti manages to convince us – the listeners – of her deep understanding of these verses. I am all in awe.
Nai studies classical music and singing in Ramallah, she composes and was already awarded several prizes for her art. Her identity as a Palestinian provides her with inspiration and motivation, she says.
Only yesterday she gave her first ever concert outside of Palestine, in Cairo's beautiful Al-Genina Theatre, and apparently swept the audience off their feet.
If you'd like to experience Nai's wonderful voice outside of Ramallah or Cairo, you can buy this great sampler, called A Time to Cry – Lament over Jerusalem. It includes songs by the equally brilliant Rim Banna, Wissam Murad and Jawaher Shoufani.
The booklet also offers english translation of all the songs.
The translation of the Darwish song you can read here:
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